Axiomatic approach to flexible and changeable production system design

The general increase of products' customization, the reduction of product life cycle spans and dynamically changing markets challenge manufacturers today. Flexible and changeable production equipment addresses these challenges. It is thus necessary to evaluate the flexibility and changeability of alternative production equipment design solutions during the design process. The paper focusses on an appropriate adaption of Axiomatic Design's information axiom. The concept of changeability and the use of Axiomatic Design when designing production equipment are first introduced. Second, design-solution-specific barriers to flexibility and changeability are described. Finally, a detailed presentation of the information axiom adaption follows. The paper concludes with a validation case of an automotive body-in-white gripper system design.